Products, not Prerequisites: The Becoming of Cultural Models

From a paleoanthropological standpoint, this chapter critically explores some essential assumptions of Cognitive Model Theory (CMT). CMT considers common mental constructs to be the fundamental components of culture. It takes a primarily cognitivist stance, with theory of mind being a prerequisite of a cultural model and its reproduction. A central question remains how culture can be a collective property that is realized and referred to by individuals. Here, examples from animal culture and early prehistory show that cultural performances could have evolved without clear mental representations. Acheulean handaxes are the oldest artifact group for which a mental template has been proposed as cognitive basis. The model of Evolution and Expansion of Cultural Capacities is used to trace the interdependencies of evolutionary-biological, individual, historical-social, and ecological dimensions in the development of cultural performances, as well as how processes of innovation and tradition work. Legitimate peripheral participation in communities of practice and participatory sense-making are described as processes of habituation, social learning, and group differentiation. Finally, the social becoming of individuals and, in parallel, the individual becoming of the social sphere are examined. From a paleoanthropological perspective, cultural models must be regarded as a result of cultural performances rather than as their basic source. A constructivist approach is appropriate for understanding the development of a cultural model, whereas a cognitivist approach supports its reproduction.